Purchase
a Limited Edition
Giclée of this
painting

My husband and I had a free day, which is rare, as we both work all the time and have many responsibilities outside of our work. The morning air was damp and the sun remained hidden behind dark clouds the whole Saturday. I thought it would be nice to play a game, called ‘Heart Guide,’ I sometimes played with my two son’s when they were younger. We got into the car and started the engine, as we drove down the steep driveway, he looked at me and asked, “Which way?” I smiled and said right. We drove into the small town of Shawnigan Lake, and when we came to the crossroad where the railway tracks meet, we turned right again. When we got to the highway, we turned left, and drove for 5 hours until we reached Port McNeill.

At this point, we listened to all the CD’s in the car, and talked about many important things that we usually don’t have time for. He looked at me once again, and asked “What now?” I said “Take the ferry to that Island on the sign, Alert Bay.” It was around 3:30 pm at this point, and Mark had trouble rationalizing this ferry trip, as it would get dark soon. We got to the Island, and drove off into a small community.

I could hear the drumbeat of a big house celebration in the distance, and when we pulled over to ask an elder what was going on, she pointed to the big house and said, go straight, and turn right, there’s lots of parking. Mark was like a little boy at this point on a treasure hunt. We got out of the car, and a young man opened the big house door for us, and another man guided us to our seats, as if they were expecting us. We raised our eyes through the thick smoke, and saw a dancer performing the Killer Whale Dance, the Wolf Dance and many others. A speaker came out at intermission, and spoke to the crowd in the Kwakwaka'wakw traditional language. He then said in English, this event is to honor the Bahai’s who have been serving our community since the late 1990’s, through helping our youth with soccer practice, our big house events with cooking and cleaning, and being of complete service to our people and asking nothing in return.

All the Bahai’s then stood up and clapped. My husband Mark could not hold his tears back, as he realized all these people sitting with the Alert Bay First Nations people, were friends of his that he has known for many years. We were exactly where the creator wanted us to be. Many people came to greet us, I introduced myself as an Esquimalt Nations member, and being a new Bahai, I felt so honored to be among so many loving people. There was only 1 hotel room available for an overnight stay, which we had to do, because there was no ferry leaving until morning. We were lucky enough to get the room, or maybe it was something a little more profound. Whatever it was, this was a beautiful beginning to my journey into reawakening the hearts of my people. - Darlene Gait.

About the Painting
In this image, the spirit of an elder sits looking into the light, like nothing else matters but this source of light appearing through the doorway. An elderly woman sits clutching her Bahai prayer book, with her eyes closed in a deep trance, as if caught between this world and the next. She sits shaking her rattle, in rhythm with the music, the drums, and the heartbeat of the people. The elderly woman seems to be the only one able to see, hear and feel what is really happening here. Everyone else remains fixated on the dancer, blind to what's really going on. An angels shadow appears on the wall above the 2 men on the right, which represents the unseen reality happening all around us, every day, every waking moment.

Medium: Acrylic on Canvas / Image Size: 36” x 36” / Created: 2010